‘Blakes 7′ Set To Be Remade By Sky TV
Blake’s 7, the cult sci-fi series which ran on the BBC between 1978 and 1981 is set to be remade by Sky. A revival has been asked for by fans for years, and now that Doctor Who has proved science fiction can work on prime time, Sky are keen to bring it back.
The show was originally launched after the worldwide success of Star Wars, but proved to be a much darker storyline with cynical characters.
In the original show, Blake was a political dissident who formed a gang of rebels (Blake’s 7) to escape deportation to a remote planet. The series ended with the whole crew being massacred. However, Blake, his lieutenant Avon, and Servalan, the Supreme Commander, are all set to be revived as part of the new series.
The show was notorious for its wobbly sets back in the 1970s, but that is not expected to be a problem this time, with the technology allowing for epic space battles, and believable sets to become a reality.
Elaine Pyke, Sky One commissioning editor, told Broadcast:
“At a time when science fiction shows often discard good storytelling for overblown visual effects and following the lead of Doctor Who and Battlestar Galactica, the time is ripe for a revival of a show that represents the best traditions of the genre.�
Sky has seen the light and decided to take a gamble with Blake’s 7 after Russell T. Davies managed to bring the long-running Dr. Who franchise bang up to date, and appealing to a whole new generation.
The BBC is going to fight back with it’s own series echoing the plot of Blake’s 7, so it looks as though science fiction fans, starved of shows for so long by snobby broadcasters, are going to soon be spoilt for choice.
I just hope that the show doesn’t get turned in to a good guy wins shadow of it’s former self.
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